"Cardinals appear when angels are near."
When my mom was alive, she loved the cardinals that nested in her yard. She would point them out to me, and we would listen for their loud chirping.
Cardinals mate for life. (I like that kind of commitment.) The male cardinal is bright red (my favorite color), and the female is a pale brown with red markings. Cardinals don't migrate but remain in the immediate area all year long. 
I get excited when I see a pair of the beautiful birds that visit the trees behind my home. In the fall and winter, I can spot them easily when I hear their chirping. They're beautiful to see in a freshly fallen snow. In the summer, they are a little harder to spot as they fly among the leaves, but their chirping lets me know they are there. So I'm not sure I believe that the cardinals are visits from angels, I do feel closer to my mom and the memories I have of her when I see them. I love cardinals.
